AUD/USD struggling to conquer 0.7500 barrier

After seesawing between minor gains and tepid losses, the AUD/USD pair turned neutral for the day and continued with its struggle to decisvely clear 0.7500 psychological barrier. 

Earlier during the day, the pair spiked beyond 0.7500 handle and touched its highest level since Nov. 16 after upbeat Chinese economic data, namely - retail sales and industrial production data. Being Australia's largest trading partner, better-than-expected Chinese economic data lend support to the Australian Dollar. The initial bullish reaction, however, turned short-lived as the disappointing release of House Price Index (HPI) from Australia was seen weighing on the domestic currency. 

Moreover, firm expectations of an imminent Fed rate-hike action on Wednesday, coupled with growing expectations of fast Fed rate-tightening cycle, further drove investors away from higher-yielding currencies - like the Aussie. Hence, market attention will remain glued to the final outcome of the FOMC meeting, which would provide fresh insights over the central bank's near-term monetary policy outlook and eventually provide fresh impetus for the pair's trajectory in the near-term.

Technical levels to watch

On a sustained move above 0.7500 handle, the pair is likely to aim towards testing the very important 200-day SMA resistance near 0.7530 above which a fresh bout of short-covering could boost the pair further towards 100-day SMA resistance near 0.7575-80 region. Meanwhile on the downside, weakness below session low support near 0.7475 level seems to drag the pair back towards 0.7450 level, which if broken might turn the pair vulnerable to break through 0.7430-25 horizontal support and head towards testing 0.7400 round figure mark.